The kimono is the national dress of Japan and is often worn as formal wear in modern times.

Some Japanese residents wear kimonos for everyday wear, such as when going out for a short time, but now that western clothes are the mainstream, fewer people wear them.

One reason people may feel that kimonos are not something they'd like to include in their wardrobe is convenience. Compared to pants, jackets or other clothes with pockets, they might think that wearing a kimono doesn't allow you to carry along any other belongings.

A Twitter post by 大西里枝 扇子屋若女将 Rie Ohnishi young proprietress of a folding fan shop (@RieOhnishi), however, revealed that this is far from the truth.

Rie Ohnishi, as her account name indicates, is the young proprietress of a 扇子 (sensu | traditional folding fan) shop in Kyoto. As you can see in the photo below and many others like it on her account, she wears a kimono on a regular basis, so she knows what she's talking about.

In a sketch that she drew, she revealed that kimonos are, in fact, almost like utility vests in their ability to accommodate many objects:

There's storage space everywhere: in the collar, the belt, as well as the sleeves!

Although not properly intended for storage, these spaces can be used to store a variety of things, depending on one's ingenuity.

Ohnishi's post received sympathetic comments from people who are used to wearing kimonos.

Various comments were also received from those who aren't familiar with kimonos and who were surprised to discover how convenient they actually could be.

Some of the comments were:

Of course, a kimono's "storage spaces" aren't suited to heavy or large items which are better off in a bag.

However, if you're only bringing along small objects such as the ones indicated in her sketch, you don't even need to bring a bag with you as long as you're wearing a kimono!

Perhaps more people became interested in wearing a kimono after reading her post.